Shares of cybersecurity provider Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) fell over 7% in after-hours trading after the company reported earnings for its first quarter of Fiscal Year 2024. Earnings per share came in at $1.38, beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $1.16.
Sales increased by 21.8% year-over-year, with revenue hitting $1.9 billion. This beat analysts’ expectations by $60 million.
Looking forward, management now expects revenue and adjusted earnings per share for Q2 2024 to be in the ranges of $1.955 billion to $1.985 billion and $1.29 to $1.31, respectively. For Fiscal Year 2024, the company expects total revenue in the range of $8.15 billion to $8.2 billion, compared to consensus expectations of $8.19B. This represents year-over-year growth of between 18% and 19%. Palo Alto also anticipates an EPS between $5.40 and $5.53, higher than analysts’ expectations of $5.34.
What is the Price Target for PANW?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on PANW stock based on 20 Buys and two Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average PANW price target of $281.19 per share implies 9.73% upside potential.
